The present invention is in the field of French press coffee makers and, more particularly, is directed to a French press coffee maker that includes an assembly to selectively reduce the contact of the coffee grounds with the liquid coffee.
It is well known to use French press coffee makers to xe2x80x9csteepxe2x80x9d coffee. Namely, boiling water is mixed with finely ground coffee in a container. The coffee is held in place between two perforated discs in the container. After the coffee is allowed to steep for several minutes, one presses down on a handle, thus containing the grinds in the bottom of the coffee maker. The coffee can then be poured (or drunk directly from) the container while the grounds are prevented from flowing out of the container.
A disadvantage with French-press coffee makers is that, as the grounds remain in contact with the water past the preferred steeping period, the coffee tends to become very strong and bitter, or just plain xe2x80x9cfunkyxe2x80x9d tasting. Thus, it is generally recommended to remove the coffee right at the end of the preferred steeping period.
One solution is to remove the prepared coffee right at the end of the preferred steeping period. However, this is impractical in some situations. For example, one might have a French-press-type commuter mug. It would be impractical to remove the coffee from the mug while commuting. As another example, thermal carafe French-press coffee makers are quite common, as they conveniently keep the coffee contained within them hot while the coffee sits, for example, at a dining table after a meal. In this case, the convenience would be compromised by having to remove the coffee (or grounds) at the end of the preferred steeping period.
A steeping apparatus is for steeping a granular solid food material in a liquid to impart a flavor of the solid food material to the liquid to produce a flavored beverage. The apparatus includes a container to hold the solid food material and the liquid. A plunger is movable vertically with respect to the container between an upper plunger position and a lower plunger position. The plunger includes a filter element that, as the plunger is moved from the upper plunger position to the lower plunger position, permits the flow of liquid therethrough but that substantially inhibits the passage of solid food material therethrough. A buffer element is situated above the plunger and is movable with respect to the container from an upper buffer element position to a lower buffer element position. When the buffer element is at the lower buffer element position, the granular solid food material is substantially decoupled from-the flavored beverage.